Before She Was Brave
by 7wanderers
Summary: Prequel to "An Officer and a Not So Gentlewoman" Shepard's life before the events of Mass Effect and it impacted her later. Rated M for the usual innuendo, language, adult situations.
1. Tragedy

****Starting another story? Why because I am crazy! And it feels easier to write a backstory with a character established through a game, right? I still have plans for a pre-First Contact story with Shepard's parents as well. Okay, officially Mass Effect obsessed!****

Rachael Shepard never thought her life could change in an instant. Life on the extra-solar colonies of Earth was easy going. Mindoir was lush and idyllic, the perfect place to raise a family, even if far from Earth. Shepard had spent nearly sixteen years on Mindoir before a single day determined the rest of her life. It was just another afternoon in the late autumn, which lasted twice as long as it did on Earth. Mindoir had an extra fifty-seven days to contend with, so the calendar wasn't solar standard.

Shepard had finished classes for the day and was helping her father on the family farm. Her parents had divorced several years ago but the still owned the farm jointly. Shepard lived with her mother Celia, while her father René remained in the house next to the farm. There was little work to do besides pulling off the bad berries from their linaberry plants. The automatic water system and sonic pesticide fence made farming an easy and lucrative business. It was harvest time however, and Shepard held the small vacuum that sucked the berries from their branches into small storage containers.

She had just begun to reload the container canister when a large ship flew closely overhead. Shepard found it slightly odd, as the spaceport was on the other side of the colony. When she saw another similar ship in the distance, she got concerned. "What was that?" René called from inside the shed that held all their farming equipment.

"It was a ship. I don't know why it was flying so low unless it was having engine problems. But there is another one over there," Shepard pointed.

René came out of the shed, shielding his eyes from the amber-colored sun that was setting in the east."Get in the house Rachael," René called, recognized the Batarian-style ship in the distance.

"What?" Shepard yelled, as another ship passed loudly overheard. The ship fired a sudden burst of gunfire into the fuel storage tanks, sending an explosive shockwave across the farm. "Dad!" Shepard yelled as she shielded herself from the blast. The tanks were near to the shed and Shepard peeked her head out from her hands to check on her father. The shed was in flames so she scrambled to her feet to find her father.

"Dad? Dad?" she called, her voice tightening in her throat.

She found her father trapped under part of the shed that was on fire. She pulled off her jacket and tried to fan the flames out. "Dad wake up!" she said, kneeling down to check his pulse.

He opened his eyes for a moment and coughed up blood. "Take the cruiser," he gurgled. "Get back to your mother's house and go somewhere safe."

"No Dad, I can't leave you here," Shepard replied, tears already forming in her eyes. "What's happening?"

"Those are Batarian ships. They are here to kill us all. You need to go," he cried out in pain.

"No, I can move this thing off you," Shepard said, trying to pull up the burning hot metal. It burned her hands and she cried out in pain.

"Damn it Rachael, go," he yelled, closing his eyes tightly. "Find someplace to hide," he added, losing consciousness again.

"Dad, no," Shepard cried for a moment.

When she heard more ships overheard, she ran towards the cruiser at the back of house. Her hands ached but she managed to get the door open and strapped into the two-person shuttle. She hadn't driven it much, but she was determined to get to her mother. She didn't get far unfortunately. As she flew over the other farms in the area, the ship that had previously fired on the house took aim at the cruiser. They hit the engine, sending the ship crashing into the field below. The shuttle hit hard into the trellises of the farm and knocked her unconscious.

When Shepard woke up she was in horrible pain. Her left side had been partially pinned when she landed and she couldn't move either of her legs without much pain. Her left arm was also numb and she was bleeding profusely from her lip, where a shard of glass from the windscreen had embedded itself. She heard the ship overhead landing and heard gruff voices approaching, so she played dead.

They spoke a different language but they laughed in a similar fashion to humans. They exchanged a few words as they stood near the driver's pod and then fired a shot into the cruiser. It hit Shepard low in the shoulder and she slumped over, trying to hide the pain on her face. She felt dizzy and nauseous and soon passed out again.

When she awoke again it was late in the night and quite cold. She knew the cold has slowed her blood loss, but she needed to staunch it as well. With only an arm to work with, she managed to pry the emergency kit from under the seat and put some medigel under her lip and onto her shoulder. The heat round had gone in right above her heart and the skin was scorched from the blast. She tried to pull herself out but with only one arm, it was impossible. She fell asleep again despite trying to stay awake. She'd begun trying to get the cruiser's radio to work but it seemed hopeless.

She spent the entire next day trying to pull herself out or fix the radio. She could hear more ships overheard and tried to remain motionless when they passed over. She ate what she could from the trellises she could reach. The acidic berries stung the wound under her lip, so she only ate when she began to feel dizzy or weak. She didn't know how much longer she could hang on, but she didn't know whether her mother was safe and was determined to find out.

The next morning she heard more ships landing nearby and remained still, pretending to be dead once again. When she heard human voices, she opened her eyes. A small group of men entered the farmhouse, which was still relatively intact, searching for survivors. Shepard tried to call out but was too weak and injured to make any sounds. She used the last of her energy to try to pull herself out again but could make no effort.

As she lapsed in between consciousness, she heard a voice approaching. "We've got a girl here. I am getting life signs," the medic yelled as he scanned her.

"Weak pulse, dangerously low blood pressure, broken femur right and left, broken tibia and fibula left, broken radius and ulna left, deep laceration lower labial region, first degree burns upper extremities," the man ran down the scan's results as the other men approached.

"If we don't get her out soon, we are going to lose her," the medic said as Shepard's mind faded. 


	2. Recovery

The next time Shepard woke up she was inside a medical pod. Her hands were covered in skin bandages and her broken bones had been reset with nano braces. She was lucid despite the pain medication, so she tried to get one of the medical attendant's attention. "Where am I?" she croaked as a man approached her pod.

"You are at Arcturus Station," the man replied. "Your name is Rachael, right? We got that much from your damaged medi-chip," he added.

"Yeah," Shepard replied. "What happened on Mindoir? Did you find my mom?"

"What is your mother's name?" the doctor asked.

"Celia Shepard."

"I don't see her in the medical database here on the station," he replied, looking the name up on his omni-tool. "Where on the colony did she live?"

"We lived in the big apartments across from the market," Shepard replied.

"Oh," the doctor's face turned pale. "I will keep checking. You need to get some more rest. You are very lucky to be alive."

Shepard knew from his expression that the news wasn't good. She'd heard about the cruelty of Batarians and guessed they'd taken no mercy on the colony. She knew her father was dead, but she couldn't fathom losing her mother as well. She tried her hardest to stay awake, trying to rationalize how her mother could have escaped, but she soon drifted back to sleep.

Shepard's recovery was slow, despite the burgeoning medical advances caused after First Contact. If she'd stayed in the cruiser another few hours she would have been dead. It wasn't until Shepard was out of the medical pod that she learned her mother was dead as well. The market district of the colony had been completely obliterated by the Batarian ships. They even bombed the area as they fled from the Alliance patrols that eventually rescued Shepard.

With both her parents dead, Shepard was placed into the care of the Alliance. She didn't have an easy life at the orphanage, lashing out in anger because of her parent's death. She went to therapy every week, but her feelings of loneliness and despair plagued her. She had to take sedatives to sleep and stop the nightmares and soon started taking them so she could sleep all day. The medic that had saved Shepard took a special interest her and encouraged her to seek stronger treatment so she could recover and have a normal life. He also encouraged her to join the Navy when she turned eighteen.

Shepard spent the next two years of her life finishing her schoolwork with the least effort possible. The rest of her time was spent lazying around the orphanage. She'd become sexually active but didn't stay with anyone on the station for too long. She sought out men whose personalities she hated, so when they left her, she didn't care about losing them.

When she turned eighteen, she had no idea what she wanted to do. Her parents had both been engineers before their deaths, but Shepard didn't have the money for a university. She joined the Alliance academy just to have something to do. Despite her apathy, she thrived in the highly disciplined environment. She was selfish enough to enjoy being in a leadership role and excelled in her studies in the academy. She still fought with her fears of intimacy and bedded more than her share of cadets, but she was finally able to sleep without drugs. 


	3. Frustration

Shepard sat poised at the ship controls, steering through a horde of enemies. She was so close to getting to the relay, she could see it in the distance. A quick moving frigate came in behind her and she tried to roll of ship to the right, but the frigate anticipated her move. It fired upon her and destroyed her ship in an instant. "Damn it!" Shepard yelled, pushing the steering control forward.

"Maybe you aren't cut out for pilot training," a cadet laughed behind her in the doorway of the simulator.

"Did Shepard die again?" another cadet laughed from beyond the door.

"Fuck you," Shepard said angrily, kicking the console. She grabbed her jacket and stormed out of the simulator and down the hall.

There was a group of cadets gathered around one of the other simulators. "Can you believe this guy has made it through the Maketa Maneuver?" one of the them exclaimed.

"Jeff is a pro, he is going to fly with the big boys someday," another remarked.

Shepard walked angrily past the other cadets and headed to the mess hall. She was glad flight training was her last class of the week. She didn't have the patience to fly ships and knew it wasn't for her. She grabbed a tray of food and sat down at a nearby table. She ate by herself for a while before another cadet sat down across from her. "Shepard, I hear you have a weekend pass?" the man asked.

"Yeah," Shepard replied haughtily.

"You wouldn't want to trade would you?" he asked. "I've got one for three weeks out."

"No, I have plans this weekend," Shepard replied.

"Come on, I am supposed take this girl out," he began.

"Take her out in three weeks or sneak her into your bunk," Shepard replied, finishing her lunch.

She got up and put her tray back and headed for the barracks. She didn't really have any plans for the weekend but she didn't want to work ensign duty on one of the patrol ships. As she returned to her bunk, she wondered why she didn't have plans. She had acquaintances at the Academy but no good friends. She usually spent her weekends off at the gun range practicing her target skills. She felt slightly restless and angry from her failure in flight class and wanted something to ease her mind.

She decided she was going to make some real plans for the weekend and contacted one of the girls in her bunk that she got along with. They agreed to go to a party Liselle had heard about. Shepard hit the showers and tried to get dressed up as best she could. Instead of spending money on clothes, she bought extranet games and old sci-fi vids. She was a little disappointed with her wardrobe selection, but it was the best she could put together in such short time. She pulled her hair down from its usual bun, hoping it would attract someone handsome to go home with.

"So who's party is this anyway?" Shepard asked when Liselle came into change.

"I don't know, some flight hockey player or something," Liselle replied. "Free booze and cute guys, that is all I care about."

Shepard was a huge flight hockey fan and wondered who was hosting the party but didn't ask Liselle. The two young woman left the barracks and headed to one of the nicer apartment districts on the station. The party was fairly crowded but there was an ample amount of alcohol, drugs, and good looking men to satisfy any whims. Shepard grabbed and drink but stayed away from the Hallex that was being passed out. She talked with Liselle for a while before two men approached them. Liselle made a quick military gesture about which one she was interested in.

Shepard didn't care, as they were both attractive enough. "Hey girls, I haven't seen you around at any of the other parties?" one of the men asked.

"We don't like to stick to the same crowd for long," Liselle said. "It gets a little boring."

"Well, what do you two do for excitement then?" the other man asked, eyeing Shepard.

"I shoot things," Shepard smiled. The two men gave her a strange look.

"We are in the Alliance Academy together," Liselle gently elbowed Shepard.

"That would explain the bodies then," the other man said, touching Liselle's waist. "I happen to be an old weapons collector. I've got some guns you can play with," he added with a laugh.

"As long as they are big and powerful," Liselle mocked.

They chatted for a while before agreeing to browse the weapons collection upstairs. John was the owner of the apartment and host of the party, while Heron was the other man interested in Shepard. "Come on girls," Heron motioned, taking Shepard's hand.

They went to the upper floor of the sprawling apartment. The giant entertainment room was full of old Earth weapons and flight hockey memorabilia as well. Shepard looked over the old lead-based weapons curiously. "So you know how to use one of these?" Heron asked.

"I understand the mechanics," Shepard glanced at him and returned her eyes to the guns.

"Well, let's see who the better shot is," John suggested, standing up to open the case. "What do you say ladies, strip and shoot?"

"Sounds good to me," Heron laughed.

"But you two have a lot more clothing on," Liselle complained.

"Worried you'll lose?" John laughed, pulling out one of the rifles.

Liselle gave him a dour look but did not answer. She knew Shepard would beat them all but said nothing. John took out the heavy target screen and rolled it to the far end of the room. "Now, mind all my other stuff when you shoot," he handed the gun to Liselle.

She stuck her tongue out at him playfully and took the shot that was slightly off the mark but impressive nonetheless. "Very impressive," John said, taking the gun. He fired his shot, which was more accurate than hers. "Sorry sweetheart," he smiled.

She sneered at him and slipped off the tunic she had on over her dress. "You've only got the dress on," Heron smiled at Shepard. "You sure you want to risk it?"

Shepard took the gun from John and lined up the sight. She fired, better than everyone else but still off slightly. The gun pulled to the right and she knew she could get it with another shot. "I think she has you beat!" John laughed, Liselle now sitting on his lap in a nearby chair.

"We'll see," Heron smiled, taking the gun from Shepard. He aimed and fired, hitting her shot nearly on the mark. "I think it is a tie," he smiled. "So we should both take something off."

"Best of two?" Shepard smiled, reaching for the gun.

She aimed once again, compensating for how the gun pulled and hit the target screen dead on. "You weren't kidding, I concede then," Heron smiled.

Liselle and John had begun making out so Heron took Shepard by the hand and led her out of the room. "My place isn't far from here," he said, giving her hand a squeeze.

He led Shepard to an apartment a few blocks down. As soon as they slipped inside they began kissing. They managed to make it as far as the couch before they began to undress and have sex. Shepard was relieved to get some frustrations out. She was tired of flight training and still had five weeks left until she could quit.

She slipped out of Heron's apartment and returned to the bunks after giving her omni-tool code to him. She hoped he'd prove worthwhile for a few weeks of sex without a hassle. She found her method of unattached love useful. She didn't miss them when they were gone and just moved on to someone else. She sleep well, her muscles relieved and flushed of all her frustrations. Liselle slipped back in the morning, slightly hungover and coming down from the Hallex she'd taken. "That was fun, we should do that again," Liselle popped some pain killers and climbed into bed.

"Yeah sure, anytime," Shepard grinned, not bothering to lift her head from the pillow. She went back to sleep quickly and spent the rest of her weekend in the bunks. 


End file.
